Preparing for “March Madness” in your Dance Studio

Elizabeth and her father attend the first Twinkle Star Dance Conference in Las Vegas.

Elizabeth and her father attend the first Twinkle Star Dance Conference in Las Vegas.

Preparing for “March Madness” in your Dance Studio

Amanda Scott, Twinkle Star Dance

February seems to be the time of year when all worlds collide in a dance studio. 

As a studio owner, You are finalizing details for this year’s recitals - costuming, ticketing, show orders, dress rehearsal; You are editing music; You are coming up with new themes, graphics, lesson plans, ordering crafts, scheduling, and marketing for summer camp; You are beginning choreography for your recreational dancers and cleaning choreography for your competitive dancers; You are editing music again (you can’t come up with two more eight counts of choreography after all); You are putting the schedule together for next season; You are hiring new teachers and administrative staff; You are training new teachers; You are waking up in the middle of the night to add to your to-do list; You are thinking up new promotions to get students to return next season; You are BURNT OUT. 

And yet You are also expected to figure out how to get new students enrolled through the end of this month and cross your fingers, knock on wood, three calls to the costume companies later *hopefully* get them a costume so they can participate in your recital. 

Help us, help you. Twinkle Star Dance is the proven dance studio business model to help you earn a comfortable living doing what you love, Teaching Dance!

Over the last five years, Twinkle Star Dance has transformed over 300 dance studio owners’ lives. Studios have gone from on the verge of shutting their doors to tripling in enrollment and classes with waitlists. But don’t just take our word for it, listen to one of our early subscribers, Elizabeth owner of Fancy Feet Dance Academy in Sacramento, CA, share her success.    

With Twinkle Star Dance Fancy Feet Dance Academy more than doubled their enrollment at their main location, allowing Elizabeth to hire 3 additional full-time teachers. Elizabeth also had a vision to expand her studio and serve more dancers in her area. We are happy to share that Fancy Feet Dance Academy recently expanded to its second location and gained 53 new students in just 30 days because of the Twinkle Star Dance program.  

“Fancy Feet Dance Academy is an environment where ages 2- teens can express and grow through music and dance. The studio provides both a competitive and non-competitive environment where dancers are encouraged to open their minds and hearts to dance.

We are all students of dance, of performance, and of life. Through this shared learning experience, we strive to inspire our students and be inspired by our students. Living, learning, teaching, creating, and developing an appreciation for dance. Our studio focuses on not only dance skills but creative movement, original choreography, dance as art and gently encourages your child’s self-esteem with the joy  of dance. We offer two optional recitals per year, our holiday show in December and June recital. Our community performance include State Fair, Parades, and East Sacramento events. 

Since subscripting to the Twinkle Star Dance program in 2013, we have been extremely successful. I was able to hire 3 more employees and expand my business from 3 rooms to 5 rooms during our busy hours. With the help of the twinkle star starter kit, curriculum, and guidance we opened a new location and went from 0 students to 53 in 30 days. It is easy to train new hires with the curriculum and videos. We can assign choreography to our instructors for our shows and costumes.  It is so much less stressful as a studio owner. Our revenue has doubled with all the ideas, curriculum, camps, father daughter, share the love marketing, etc. As a studio owner I don’t have the time to come up with graphics and camps year after year. Graphic designers are expensive and that is just one extra thing. I am very happy to have the TSD gallery to choose from over 50 graphics. I feel that Tiffany and her team are motivating and keep me on track with monthly subscriber meetings and emails to remind us of upcoming ideas/updates. It is easy to find them, post them, and be done within 5 minutes.

 I also attend the Twinkle Star Dance Conference and they have been extremely helpful and worth it. I was able to take my 3 of my instructors to New Orleans and they loved it. I recommend subscribing to the program if you haven’t already.“

Thank you,

 Miss Elizabeth, Owner/Creative Director

Fancy Feet Dance Academy 

Join Elizabeth and 300+ other dance studio owners in the Twinkle Star Dance community. Still on the fence, register for the all new Pinnacle Dance Conference and Retreat July 10-12, 2020 at the Four Seasons Resort at Troon North in Scottsdale, AZ and gain exclusive behind the scenes access to Tiffany Henderson and the Twinkle Star Dance Method.

Beat the Summer Cash Flow Blues

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Beat the Summer Cash Flow Blues

Tiffany Henderson with Amanda Scott

Twinkle Star Dance

I am not sure who decided that in the summer we completely change our business model as dance studio owners, but I am here to say year-round dance season changed my studio and my life. We all know the struggles of summer in a dance studio: decreased monthly revenue, using recital profits to “float” through summer, financial hardships in summer leading to stress at the start of the new season, and not being able to step away to recharge.

I want to let you in on a little something I call “the un-summer summer.” Here are six of my tried and true tips to beat the summer cash flow blues:

  1. Recital Profit - Think Beyond Recital Tickets

    When you have audience members at your shows they want to buy something. Offer flowers, trophies, t-shirts, concessions for them to buy during the performance or even send out a “buy by reply” email to them to preorder.

  2. New Season Registration - Be the First Activity on the Family Calendar

    Start your new season enrollment early while your dancers are still currently enrolled. We run our new season registration in April for classes that begin in July. Offer the best promotion on your registration day and generate a buzz 2-3 weeks prior.

  3. Spring Sessions - Never Stop Taking Enrollment

    Common sense says we don’t turn away business at anytime of the year. Notice trends in your studio and add new classes to your schedule that run March - June. You could even offer them a chance to participate in the recital by using in-stock costumes.

  4. Don’t Take a Traditional Summer - Offer a Year-Round Dance Season

    Your business cannot survive on revenue from summer dance camps alone! Parents actually prefer to register for the class, day, time, and teacher that they will have all season and pay $65 monthly dance class tuition versus $125 for one week of dance camp.

  5. Additional Revenue Sources - Add to your Bottom Line

    By offering dress code and costumes I aim to make commissions that roughly equal one month of tuition revenue. Check out Revolution Dancewear for my recommended dress code.

  6. Summer Camps and Intensives - Keep Hours Conservative and Price Competitive

    We run Summer Camps and Intensives in conjunction with our year-round classes in June, July, and August. We max our camps out at between 2-3 hours per day and offer flexible times and daily rates.

Want to know more best business practices to help your studio stay cash positive in the summer? Join me in my hometown Livermore Wine Country, CA Thursday, February 27 - Friday, February 28 at Thrive Studio Conference. There is also be a special appearance by Suzanne Blake Gerety from DanceStudioOwner.com.

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NEW YEAR, NEW YOU, NEW STUDIO

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NEW YEAR, NEW YOU, NEW STUDIO

Tiffany Henderson with Amanda Scott 

As this season comes to a close and 2020 is fast approaching, I am sitting with my family on vacation and reflecting on 20 years of owning and operating a dance studio business. While my goals are a little different than when I first opened my one room dance studio on Vacso Road, I am excited to take some much needed time to myself to reset before I return to the classroom in the new year. 

Looking ahead at our annual recital productions I am inspired by previous generations - Joe Tremaine who taught me that even after a long weekend working you still arrive on time Monday morning and get back in the studio to create; Michael Williams whose musicality and commitment to detail always push me to add that extra nuance when the music says so; Miss Carol, my very first dance teacher, who said yes when I asked if I could come on the dance trip to Hawaii even though I was only a recreational dancer. 

It is clear to me that the impact we have on our students goes beyond the dance steps and extends into the world around us. We are doing important work shaping future generations.  

New Year 

Feeling out of sorts after the holiday hustle? Reset at Thrive Studio Conference in New Jersey and California. View the entire Curtsy Collection for Twinkle Star Dance, plus attend the brand new “Beat the Summer Cash Flow Blues” seminar on how to generate profit to prepare for the summer months. 

New You 

Experience 5-Star Luxury Dining and Customer Service at the Four Seasons Resort at Troon North. Don’t miss the rebranded Pinnacle Dance Conference + Retreat July 10-12, 2020. Our three-day conference benefits dance studio owners, teachers, and administrators alike in an intimate atmosphere. 

New Studio 

Now is the time to make necessary changes in your business. Looking for engaging classroom content for your 2-6 year olds? Need to get all of your teachers on the same page? Check out our Twinkle Star Dance Curriculum and Choreography.  

Happy New Year! 

Tiffany

Shop the Curtsy Collection for Twinkle Star Dance

20 must-have costumes perfectly paired for your recital!

The Curtsy Collection is big on personality and low on price–perfect for your studio’s young recreational dancers. From sweet to jazzy—and even something for the cool kids—check out the 20 adorable new styles!

  • All accessories included!

  • Ships in a Curtsy tote bag

  • Perfect for a first recital, sizes XSC–XXLC

  • Designed to pair with Twinkle Star Dance Choreography

  • Twinkle Star Dance subscribers get $2 off each style!

  • Curtsy has the same quality customer service, order reliability, and fit that Revolution has offered for years!

  • All orders over 15 units ship for FREE